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Croatia at the World Cup 2026 — squad, group, fixtures & odds

Croatia are competing at the 2026 World Cup in Group L, alongside England, Panama, Ghana. Onside's model gives them 57% to reach the Round of 16 and 3.1% to win the trophy. Full schedule, projected XI, advance scenarios and Premier League players inside.
● GROUP STAGE COMPLETE

When does Croatia play next?

Croatia have completed their Group L fixtures. Knockout-round opponent depends on other group results — see the live bracket for the projected path.

FIFA #11 · GROUP L · EUROPE

Croatia

FIFA · #11CROGROUP LEUROPE

Croatia carry comfortable expectations through Group L — the model has them safely into the round of 16, with their championship journey opening up from there.

ONSIDE AI · TOURNAMENT MODEL v5

CHAMPION PROBABILITY
3.1%
vs 47 OTHER NATIONS
0%17%
CROATIA'S TOURNAMENT JOURNEY
ROUND OF 16
57%
QUARTER-FINAL
33%
SEMI-FINAL
17%
FINAL
7.8%
CHAMPION
3.1%

Cumulative probabilities · Updated each match · 60-min refresh

L
Group
3
Group fixtures
3
PL stars

At the first 48-team World Cup, hosted across USA, Canada and Mexico from 11 June to 19 July 2026. Drawn in Group L with England, Panama, Ghana.

THE GROUP

Croatia vs the rest of Group L

FIFA ranks at draw time. Top two from the group advance directly to the Round of 32; the eight best third-place finishers across all 12 groups also progress.

ONSIDE INTELLIGENCE · POWERED BY THE ENGINE
AI-MODELLED

Croatia's tournament path — the fantasy angle

QUALIFY %
66%
to reach R32
GROUP xP
6.1
across 3 games
EXPECTED FINISH
#2 in group
WC FANTASY CAPTAIN(C)
Mateo Kovačić
Man City
Highest projected impact in this squad
LIKELY SCORERGOAL
Mateo Kovačić
Man City
Top attacking PL contributor
TOP 3 CONTRIBUTORS · PROJECTED PTS/90
1
Mateo Kovačić
6.1
2
Joško Gvardiol
4.6
3
Luka Vušković
4.6
VERDICTLive group — ~66% to advance. Mateo Kovačić the likely captaincy lever.
SHARE CROATIA'S TOURNAMENT
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GROUP RIVAL H2H · LIFETIME WC

Croatia's ledger vs Group L

All-time World Cup meetings against this group's other three nations. The history that walks onto the pitch.

vs England
FIFA #4 · Group L
NEVER MET
0W0D0L
GF 0GA 0GD 0
No prior World Cup meetings in our 2002-2022 window. First meeting could come at MD1.
FULL COMPARISON →
vs Panama
FIFA #33 · Group L
NEVER MET
0W0D0L
GF 0GA 0GD 0
No prior World Cup meetings in our 2002-2022 window. First meeting could come at MD1.
FULL COMPARISON →
vs Ghana
FIFA #74 · Group L
NEVER MET
0W0D0L
GF 0GA 0GD 0
No prior World Cup meetings in our 2002-2022 window. First meeting could come at MD1.
FULL COMPARISON →
FIXTURE DIFFICULTY HEATMAP
CELL COLOUR = RANK DELTA

Croatia's 3 group matches at a glance

Difficulty by pre-tournament FIFA rank delta. Acid means Croatia is the favourite; amber is a coin-toss; red means the underdog. Switches to actual-result colour once each match is played.

MD1A
England
FIFA #4
-7 rank delta
Wed 17 Jun
MD2A
Panama
FIFA #33
+22 rank delta
Tue 23 Jun
MD3H
Ghana
FIFA #74
+63 rank delta
Sat 27 Jun
2
Easy
1
Toss
0
Hard

Croatia is FIFA #11. Group avg rank is #31 20 places stronger than the group mean.

FIXTURES

Croatia's group-stage matches

MDDateUTCUKOpponent
1Wed 17 Jun20:0021:00
2Tue 23 Jun23:0000:00
3Sat 27 Jun21:0022:00
THE PL × WC FUNNEL

3 Premier League players representing Croatia

Track these names — their tournament minutes shape your FPL 2026/27 GW1 captaincy shortlist. 2 from Man City alone.

Man City
2
Joško Gvardiol
Mateo Kovačić
Spurs
1
Luka Vušković

Source: Premier League official article (29 May 2026). ~ marks players inferred from secondary reporting where the squad wasn't formally announced.

FPL ANGLE

Why Croatia's tournament matters for FPL 2026/27

Croatia's 3 PL players will play 3 group matches before the FPL deadline locks. Watch for minutes, form, and tactical fit at international level — the strongest available signal before pre-season friendlies start.

WORLD CUP FANTASY · CROATIA

Pick Croatia stars in FIFA World Cup Fantasy

Use the Onside captain / differential / value picks to assemble a Croatia-heavy XI, then build it in the official FIFA game. In FIFA Fantasy, open the player list and filter by country = Croatia to surface every eligible name.

Onside is not affiliated with FIFA. We publish picks; you play them in the official game.

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